Crime & Safety
Ex-North Kingstown Basketball Coach Charged With Child Molestation
The charges came following an investigation into "naked fat test" Aaron Thomas conducted on his students, prosecutors said.
NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI — Aaron Thomas, the former North Kingstown High School basketball coach accused in the naked fat test scandal, was charged with child molestation and sexual assault, Attorney General Peter Neronha said Thursday.
Following a joint investigation between North Kingstown police and the Attorney General's Office, Thomas, 55, was charged on July 21 with one count of second degree child molestation and one count of second degree sexual assault. Thomas is scheduled to be arraigned on Aug. 19, in Washington County Superior Court.
Authorities said Thomas, while employed at North Kingstown High School as a teacher and basketball coach, sexually violated two victims. The child molestation charge stemmed from Thomas engaging in sexual contact with a victim under the age of 14, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said the molestation happened between Sept. 1, 2000 and Feb. 22, 2002.
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Prosecutors said the second charge stemmed from Thomas coercing his victim during the naked fat test for the purpose of "sexual arousal, gratification or stimulation." The assault happened between Sept. 1, 2019 and Feb. 22, 2020, prosecutors said.
During the investigation, interviews were conducted with more than 30 former students who attended North Kingstown High School from the early '90s through 2020, as well as teachers, coaches, administrators and medical professionals.
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Under Rhode Island law, the statute of limitations for second degree sexual assault is three years, however, there is no statute of limitations for second degree child molestation.
More on naked fat test story
- Another School Official Resigns Over 'Naked Fat Test' Scandal
- Student Says Ex-N. Kingstown Coach Molested Him During Fat Tests
- Ex-Judge To Review Naked 'Fat Test' Investigations Into Former Coach
- N. Kingstown Parents Urge Superintendent To Resign Over Fat Tests
- Naked 'Fat Tests' Were Legal, Says Ex-N. Kingstown Coach's Lawyer
- Ex-RI Teacher Fired From New Job Over Naked 'Fat Tests': Report
- N. Kingstown Schools Knew About Coach's Naked 'Fat Tests': Report
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